Garth Brooks Ireland impasse wins more negotiating time

The impasse between Garth Brooks and local groups seeking to limit his access to Croke Park got another three days of negotiation time as Ticketmaster announced on Sunday (7/13) that the start time for refunds would be delayed until Thursday.

In a press conference announcing that a world tour would commence later in the year along with the fall release of new music that he's now in the studio recording, Brooks held out hope that the Irish concert situation could be resolved, and said his crews would continue transporting and preparations to build his custom stage in Croke Park up until the time that refunds begin.

The negotiations revolve around agreements between the operators of the facility and local neighborhood groups, who have agreements in place capping the number of special events at the venue annually. Combined with a series of One Direction shows that played earlier in the year, the five shows put on sale for Garth Brooks--each with a capacity of 80,000 people--blew past the cap of three allowed events per year.

As a compromise, city officials agreed to allow three of Brooks' five shows to happen, but that options was nixed by Brooks, who describes his position as having to decide which fans deserve a show and which don't, which he refuses to do.

In late developments, Labor Party leader Tanaiste Joan Burton indicated over the weekend that there was evidence that some names listed as opposing the concerts in the planning application for the shows were added without the knowledge of those named. Officials expressed hope that the correction of the application might allow officials the political leeway to reverse their decision or find a scenario that works with the neighborhood groups.